Falling In Love Again With Politics

So this is a bit goofy, but I am readdicted to the NBC television series The West Wing.  I loved it when it was new and would arrange my life around those nights when it ran.
My routine included Peperidge Farm Mint Milano cookies, a hearty mug of Earl Grey tea and my biggest, baggiest sweatpants.  I had to make room for the  bag of cookies after all.  The top was always relegated to my favorite Claremont Men’s College sweatshirt.  So many of my classmates had interned in Washington, DC and several even worked there. So this weekly fashion statement a small way of showing support; being in the center of political life without really being there.
Everyone knew that I was not to be disturbed during The West Wing.  There were no drinks after work, grabbing a bit to eat out or general socialization.  I shut down the outside world so I could enter the inside of the most hallowed home in America.
I loved the political drama, smirked along with the cast at their inside jokes, marveled at the historical protocol mandates and was often jolted by the fast pace of process.  Each show made me proud of the human spirit, the American message and the impact that one person can make.  From the harried secretaries to the big man in the Oval Office, each actor played a part that was epic.
The West Wing was entertainment, make no mistake.  But it was also a study in inspiration with the framework of human frailty.  Ego, hubris and the competitive spirit were central to so many scripts.  In that aspect, the show was more reality than fiction.
I was a young idealistic, working woman then.  I desperately wanted my country to be led by people like the cast members I engaged with each week via TV.  I cheered for the noble spirit and rooted for the show’s characters to do the right thing.  Even when “the right thing” might be a bit murky, there was honor in protecting democracy.
Today, I have a child who is actually working for a former President of the United States.  During her college vacation, we started watching the reruns.  It started as a fun thing to do on a quiet Sunday afternoon and morphed into an obsession.  We have been running through the seasons with relish and heartily discussing each episode.  Will Josh ever ask Donna out?   Can the President really do that?  Who leaked that information?
I have fallen in love again with the hope of leadership and the burden of gravitas.  I am reminded how there is virtue in process, history and future thinking.  Most of all, I am revisiting a time of youthful optimism and sharing it with the next generation of leadership.  One who just happens to my own child.
   From the Heart…